Words of the Day:
los raudales-rapids
el timon/la guia- rudder
tender un hamaca- hang up a hammock
retirar platos- clear plates
Check out this excellent letter Mark Twain wrote back home about his travels on the Rio San Juan: http://www.twainquotes.com/18670316.html Apparently he was really bitter about only having ham sandwiches to eat.
Fleeing the insanity that is a fiestas patronales celebration, my sitemate Christina and I headed down to San Carlos to meet with lots of other PCVs (peace corps volunteers) from all over Nicaragua for an 11 person, 2 day, 60 kilometer kayak trip from the department capital of San Carlos down the famed Rio San Juan to the tiny town of El Castillo, where the Spanish army was once stationed in a small fort to fight English pirates who came in from the Atlantic Coast, up to the river to attack the colonial capital of Granada.
While some things have changed since Mark Twain's travels, the Rio San Juan is still a gorgeous place, and is very much deserving of all the recent tourist hype, which is mostly geared at getting more people who are already in Nicaragua to make the trip down. While you can make it down to El Castillo in about an hour and a half if you take the fastest boat, we decided to take the scenic route, kayaking 30 km daily. This was tough on the arms, but was really cool because we got to take things slow, chat with everybody and see tons of flora and fauna up close.
The Rio San Juan is wide and muddy, but generally fairly calm with a slow, steady current. It's one of the wettest places on earth, but this time of year we had two rain free days. For the most part, there's only rain forest bordering the river, although in a lot of spots now there are cows, tiny villages and there's a giant bridge to Costa Rica being constructed, which will really create a lot of change in the region. Despite the small human presence, there are plenty of uninterrupted stretches, with trees and vines of every kind, bromeliads growing on everything, flowers tumbling from every corner.
The river is literally crawling with wildlife. Different birds stood guard over their hunting ground on every inch of the river.
In only two days, we saw:
-howler, spider and capuchin monkeys
-lizards- possibly iguanas or chameleons
-fish jumping
-parakeets
-zopaillotes (buzzards)
-kingfishers
-jacanas? I'm going by the Birds of Mexico and Central America guidebook my mother sent me...
-a few birds of prey
-great blue herons, egrets
-a roseate spoonbill
-pato chanchos (pig ducks, no idea where the name comes from)
-no crocodiles, toucans or parrots, sadly(?)
After a long first day of paddling with a late start, we arrived exhausted and sun-scorched at Grand Hotel Lodge, just in time for sunset. It was a neat place, with little rustic cabanas that were pretty clean given the location in roughly the middle of nowhere. There were plenty of dirty European hippies hanging around, but it also had the vibe of being with a Nicaragua family, with children, dogs and women bustling around, cooking over an open fire. The owner, Martin, was probably one of the most friendly and exuberant hostel owners I've ever met. If you spend any extended period of time in Rio San Juan, you will see Martin or his picture.
After a rough night due to a birthday party for the owner's brother which we were too tired to participate in and being awakened by howler monkeys at 5 am, we got back onto the water by about 7:30. There was more gorgeous scenery, especially near the town of Boca de Sabalos where there where small rapids as the current picked up a bit. Near El Castillo, things became more bucolic with cows, international aid projects relating to cacao and fewer trees. Exhausted, we became a little but anxious to know where El Castillo was, but we kept assuring ourselves that it would be "just around the next river bend." Finally, we sighted it! The old fortaleza guarded the small stilt houses below it, jutting out into the water where a series of rapids created smoothing noise. We found a cheap hostel right on the water and hung out on their porch for a while. With the power in town out, we had some well deserved fish tacos and coconut water by candle light, before getting some very necessary ibuprofen and sleep.
The morning, we got AMAZING moccachinos at Borders Cafe, made with freshly ground cacao and high quality coffee, before wandering up to the fort to take in the great views of the river and wandering more around town. There are only a few streets in El Castillo, but its charming, clean and colorful. In the afternoon, my sitemate and I opted to take the slow boat back, watching the social cohesion along the river, where everyone in the boat knew each other, passed packages or let on passengers in tiny little communities...It took 3 hours, but it was a relatively relaxing ride. We pulled into San Carlos right at sunset, on a clear enough day to see the giant volcanoes over in Costa Rica.
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Replicate our trip!
-Pro Tips: Hit the water early, and bring sleeves/hat, etc. to cover up. It's bright out there. Bring a flashlight. Light and electricity are dicey in San Carlos and south. Bring plenty of food and water, there really isn't anywhere you can stop along the way, other than Grand River Lodge, and Boca de Sabalos.When to Go: Depends what you're looking for. Dry season (February-April) is a nice time to go because you're not as likely to get rained on, although it is definitely hotter. Semana Santa is a nice option, because you'll still be on the water, but it won't be as mobbed as the Pacific beaches. There might be fewer birds and a few trees will be a little brown, but its still one of the wettest places on earth...You also won't be able to get the famed giant shrimp for which the river is well known. It all depends how you're going and what you're going for.
Getting to El Castillo:
Fast boat (1.5 hours)- C$140
Slow boat (3 hours)-C$90
Kayak: Kayak rentals can be somewhat difficult to get in San Carlos for longer trips. It's tempting to try and do things yourself, but you probably won't save money and you definitely won't save frustration. Going with an outfitter is worth it in this case.
The Portuaria rents kayaks hourly. Hotel Cabinas Leykos has a few boats. We got our kayaks from an outfitter for C$800, which included two day rental and transportation of the boats back up the river. Ask around and see what you get.
Great River Lodge (approximately 30km downstream):
US $3/ hammock, $7 dorm bed, $15 private cabana
Breakfast (with coffee): C$60
Free horseback rides and cacao plantation tour and chocolate
You could stay in Sabalos too, but it's about 40km downriver.
El Castillo:
*Note for budget travelers: you can find cheap hostels, but it's hard to find cheap eats in El Castillo- food is about double the going rate in other parts of Nicaragua, and most places don't have kitchens that you can use.
- Hospedaje Universal: $10 rooms with 2 singles or double beds. Nice balcony overlooking the rapids.
-Borders Cafe: Moccachino C$50. That's all you need to know.
-El Chinadegano- Nice little restaurant right on the water with C$180 fish tacos. Most restaurants on the water have similarly nice ambiance and prices.
-La Fortaleza- C$0-50 depending on how good you are at smooth talking, what you're doing in Nicaragua and whether or not you're taking pictures.
-Nena River Lodge- a blue house midway down the street- ask the owner for C$10 coconuts
-Cacao Cooperative: C$2 for locally made, 70% cacao goodness. On a small path to the left of the crossroads for Loma Nelson/La Fortaleza.
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